When an editor asked me for a screenshot of MonoTouch, which lets you use an open-source implementation of Microsoft's .NET Framework to target Apple's iPhone and iPad, I obtained it the best way I know, which is by installing it and trying it out. It is something I have been meaning to try for a while. There is high demand for apps on Apple's iOS, and both the iPhone and the iPad are finding their way into businesses. As all those app requests arrive on developer desks, what is the best way to meet them? They cannot be ignored for ever. I do not doubt the implication of Steve Jobs' essay, Thoughts on Flash, that, other things being equal, the best way to develop for iOS is with Objective C. Other things are never equal though; and for developers with a ton of existing .NET Framework applications along with skills in C# the possibility of creating iOS apps in a familiar language and framework is compelling. There may even be some code that could be ported. Monotouch is a commercial product, though you can get started for free, with the main limitation being that you can only deploy to the iPhone emulator.Installation is not difficult, though there are a couple of big dependencies: Apple's iPhone SDK, and the full desktop version of Mono for OSX. You probably also want MonoDevelop OS X, the Mono IDE. Oh yes, and a Mac of course. Then I got started. The New Solution dialog presents a choice of several iOS project types:
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